EXPLORE DETECTIONS
AWS STS AssumeRoot by Rare User and Member Account
Identifies when the STS AssumeRoot action is performed by a rare user in AWS. The AssumeRoot action allows users to assume the root member account role, granting elevated but specific permissions based on the task policy specified. Adversaries who have compromised user credentials can use this technique to escalate privileges and gain unauthorized access to AWS resources. This is a New Terms rule that identifies when the STS AssumeRoot action is performed by a user that rarely assumes this role against a specific member account.
AWS STS GetCallerIdentity API Called for the First Time
An adversary with access to a set of compromised credentials may attempt to verify that the credentials are valid and determine what account they are using. This rule looks for the first time an identity has called the STS GetCallerIdentity API, which may be an indicator of compromised credentials. A legitimate user would not need to perform this operation as they should know the account they are using.
AWS STS GetCallerIdentity Enumeration Via TruffleHog
Detects the use of TruffleHog for AWS credential validation by identifying GetCallerIdentity API calls where the userAgent indicates TruffleHog. Threat actors leverage TruffleHog to enumerate and validate exposed AWS keys. Successful exploitation allows threat actors to confirm the validity of compromised AWS credentials, facilitating further unauthorized access and actions within the AWS environment.
AWS STS GetSessionToken Misuse
Identifies the suspicious use of GetSessionToken. Tokens could be created and used by attackers to move laterally and escalate privileges.
AWS STS Role Assumption by Service
Identifies when a service has assumed a role in AWS Security Token Service (STS). Services can assume a role to obtain temporary credentials and access AWS resources. Adversaries can use this technique for credential access and privilege escalation. This is a New Terms rule that identifies when a service assumes a role in AWS Security Token Service (STS) to obtain temporary credentials and access AWS resources. While often legitimate, adversaries may use this technique for unauthorized access, privilege escalation, or lateral movement within an AWS environment.
AWS STS Role Assumption by User
Identifies when a user or role has assumed a role in AWS Security Token Service (STS). Users can assume a role to obtain temporary credentials and access AWS resources. Adversaries can use this technique for credential access and privilege escalation. This is a New Terms rule that identifies when a user assumes a role in AWS Security Token Service (STS) to obtain temporary credentials and access AWS resources. While often legitimate, adversaries may use this technique for unauthorized access, privilege escalation, or lateral movement within an AWS environment.
AWS STS Role Chaining
Identifies role chaining activity. Role chaining is when you use one assumed role to assume a second role through the AWS CLI or API. While this a recognized functionality in AWS, role chaining can be abused for privilege escalation if the subsequent assumed role provides additional privileges. Role chaining can also be used as a persistence mechanism as each AssumeRole action results in a refreshed session token with a 1 hour maximum duration. This is a new terms rule that looks for the first occurance of one role (aws.cloudtrail.user_identity.session_context.session_issuer.arn) assuming another (aws.cloudtrail.resources.arn).
AWS Successful Console Authentication From Multiple IPs
The following analytic detects an AWS account successfully authenticating from multiple unique IP addresses within a 5-minute window. It leverages AWS CloudTrail logs, specifically monitoring `ConsoleLogin` events and counting distinct source IPs. This behavior is significant as it may indicate compromised credentials, potentially from a phishing attack, being used concurrently by an adversary and a legitimate user. If confirmed malicious, this activity could allow unauthorized access to corporate resources, leading to data breaches or further exploitation within the AWS environment.
AWS Successful Console Login Without MFA
Detects successful AWS console logins that were performed without Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA). This alert can be used to identify potential unauthorized access attempts, as logging in without MFA can indicate compromised credentials or misconfigured security settings.
AWS Successful Single-Factor Authentication
The following analytic identifies a successful Console Login authentication event for an AWS IAM user account without Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA) enabled. It leverages AWS CloudTrail logs to detect instances where MFA was not used during login. This activity is significant as it may indicate a misconfiguration, policy violation, or potential account takeover attempt. If confirmed malicious, an attacker could gain unauthorized access to the AWS environment, potentially leading to data exfiltration, resource manipulation, or further privilege escalation.
AWS Suspicious SAML Activity
Identifies when suspicious SAML activity has occurred in AWS. An adversary could gain backdoor access via SAML.
AWS Suspicious User Agent Fingerprint
Identifies successful AWS API calls where the CloudTrail user agent indicates offensive tooling or automated credential verification. This includes the AWS CLI or Boto3 reporting a Kali Linux distribution fingerprint (`distrib#kali`), and clients that identify as TruffleHog, which is commonly used to validate leaked secrets against live AWS APIs. These patterns are uncommon for routine production workloads and may indicate compromised credentials, unauthorized access, or security tooling operating outside approved scope.
AWS Systems Manager SecureString Parameter Request with Decryption Flag
Detects the first occurrence of a user identity accessing AWS Systems Manager (SSM) SecureString parameters using the GetParameter or GetParameters API actions with credentials in the request parameters. This could indicate that the user is accessing sensitive information. This rule detects when a user accesses a SecureString parameter with the withDecryption parameter set to true. This is a New Terms rule that detects the first occurrence of an AWS identity accessing SecureString parameters with decryption.
AWS Unusual Number of Failed Authentications From Ip
The following analytic identifies a single source IP failing to authenticate into the AWS Console with multiple valid users. It uses CloudTrail logs and calculates the standard deviation for source IP, leveraging the 3-sigma rule to detect unusual numbers of failed authentication attempts. This behavior is significant as it may indicate a Password Spraying attack, where an adversary attempts to gain initial access or elevate privileges. If confirmed malicious, this activity could lead to unauthorized access, data breaches, or further exploitation within the AWS environment.
AWS UpdateLoginProfile
The following analytic detects an AWS CloudTrail event where a user with permissions updates the login profile of another user. It leverages CloudTrail logs to identify instances where the user making the change is different from the user whose profile is being updated. This activity is significant because it can indicate privilege escalation attempts, where an attacker uses a compromised account to gain higher privileges. If confirmed malicious, this could allow the attacker to escalate their privileges, potentially leading to unauthorized access and control over sensitive resources within the AWS environment.
AWS User Login Profile Was Modified
Detects activity when someone is changing passwords on behalf of other users. An attacker with the "iam:UpdateLoginProfile" permission on other users can change the password used to login to the AWS console on any user that already has a login profile setup.
AWS VPC Flow Logs Deleted
Detects the deletion of one or more VPC Flow Logs in AWS Elastic Compute Cloud (EC2) through the DeleteFlowLogs API call. Adversaries may delete flow logs to evade detection or remove evidence of network activity, hindering forensic investigations and visibility into malicious operations.
AWS VPC Flow Logs Deletion
Identifies the deletion of one or more flow logs in AWS Elastic Compute Cloud (EC2). An adversary may delete flow logs in an attempt to evade defenses.
AWS WAF Access Control List Deletion
Identifies the deletion of an AWS Web Application Firewall (WAF) Web ACL. Web ACLs are the core enforcement objects in AWS WAF, defining which traffic is inspected, allowed, or blocked for protected applications. Deleting a Web ACL removes all associated rules, protections, and logging configurations. Adversaries who obtain sufficient privileges may delete a Web ACL to disable critical security controls, evade detection, or prepare for downstream attacks such as web-application compromise, data theft, or resource abuse. Because Web ACLs are rarely deleted outside of controlled maintenance or infrastructure updates, unexpected deletions may indicate potential defense evasion.
AWS WAF Rule or Rule Group Deletion
Identifies the deletion of an AWS Web Application Firewall (WAF) rule or rule group. WAF rules and rule groups enforce critical protections for web applications by filtering malicious HTTP requests, blocking known attack patterns, and enforcing access controls. Deleting these rules—even briefly—can expose applications to SQL injection, cross-site scripting, credential-stuffing bots, or targeted exploitation. Adversaries who have gained sufficient permissions may remove WAF protections as part of a broader defense evasion or impact strategy, often preceding data theft or direct application compromise.
Azure Active Directory High Risk Sign-in
The following analytic detects high-risk sign-in attempts against Azure Active Directory, identified by Azure Identity Protection. It leverages the RiskyUsers and UserRiskEvents log categories from Azure AD events ingested via EventHub. This activity is significant as it indicates potentially compromised accounts, flagged by heuristics and machine learning. If confirmed malicious, attackers could gain unauthorized access to sensitive resources, leading to data breaches or further exploitation within the environment.
Azure Active Directory Hybrid Health AD FS New Server
This detection uses azureactivity logs (Administrative category) to identify the creation or update of a server instance in an Azure AD Hybrid health AD FS service. A threat actor can create a new AD Health ADFS service and create a fake server instance to spoof AD FS signing logs. There is no need to compromise an on-prem AD FS server. This can be done programmatically via HTTP requests to Azure.
Azure Active Directory Hybrid Health AD FS Service Delete
This detection uses azureactivity logs (Administrative category) to identify the deletion of an Azure AD Hybrid health AD FS service instance in a tenant. A threat actor can create a new AD Health ADFS service and create a fake server to spoof AD FS signing logs. The health AD FS service can then be deleted after it is not longer needed via HTTP requests to Azure.
Azure AD Account Credential Leaked
Indicates that the user's valid credentials have been leaked.